Madonna back in Malawi

  1. Posted on Monday 4 May 2009 - 08:35
    Sam Banda Junior
    Image of Sam Banda Junior
    Sam Banda Junior, AfricaNews reporter in Blantyre, Malawi Photo: Madonna with adopted David
    The controversy surrounding the adoption of a four-year-old girl Mercy James in Malawi by US pop singer Madonna resurfaces in an appeal case later today. The hearing would be held in Malawi's Supreme Court of Appeal after the Malawi High Court rejected the popular singer's adoption bid last month.
    madonna_david
    The pop singer through local lawyer Allan Chinula appealed against the ruling after Judge Esmie Chombo ruled that Madonna could not adopt Mercy James in a case that made international headlines.

    The High Court ruled that there was no evidence that Mercy was not being looked after well at her current orphanage. Madonna wants to adopt a second child from the southern African country to be a sister to David, whom she adopted in a similar case in 2006.

    Human rights organizations dragged Madonna to court when she adopted David – now three years – but she won the case. However, on her second adoption the organizations said they would not stand in her way but appealed to Madonna to follow the country’s adoption laws.

    Meanwhile, latest report reaching AfricaNews has it that Eye of the Child, a non-governmental organization has waded into the case as “friends of the court.” An official of the NGO Maxwell Matewere said they are neither for or against the adoption but said the court ruling would determine the way forward on the adoption of children in the country.

    Malawi is one of the country’s which has seen a rise in more orphans due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Latest News

  1. OPINION: Welcome to African Green Revolution24/05For the past century and a half, Africa has tried various agricultural approaches without much success.
  2. Egyptians vote in historic election23/05Egyptians began voting freely on Wednesday for the first time to pick their president in a wide open election that pits Islamists against men who serv…
  3. Africa Day 2012 - a moment for reflection and…22/0525th May is Africa Day. For many years it has been a celebration of African unity. It dates back to 1963 when the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) …
  4. South Africa's African agenda21/05The Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Kgalema Mothlanthe paid a rare visit to Ghana in April at the invitation of John Dramani Mahama …
  5. Women struggle to rinse hunger, poverty stains21/05Just looking at her one clearly appreciates that she is old and frail therefore in need of support for food, clothing and shelter to live comfortably …
  6. Climate Climate change affects migratory birds…21/05Changes in the climate globally have affected the movement of both migratory and resident species of birds, Nature Uganda has said.
  7. Ghana: Foreign retailers cited for currency…18/05The Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) is attributing the sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi against major currencies to the illegal activiti…
  8. Kenya: Community radio brings succour to…18/05Korogocho, a slum in northeastern Nairobi with 100,000 inhabitants, had many of the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked…
  9. Veld fires 'flame' Zimbabwe's…16/05Over the years, Zimbabwe has experienced the scourge of veld fires destroying property worth thousands of dollars.
  10. Liberia commends ECOWAS for support14/05The induction training of pioneer Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Volunteers for Liberia kicked off in Monrovia, with the Deputy Mi…
  11. Vanishing Lake Chad puts 30m lives at risk14/05As you approach the Lake Chad basin from Maiduguri, in north-eastern Nigeria, the evidence of despair is telling.
  12. Heavy rains cause havoc in Kenya14/05Heavy Rainfall continued to wreak havoc across the country leading to the suspension of relief food in some parts of the country as most roads in Turk…
  13. Zimbabwe: Growth points lie dormant14/05The Zimbabwean government mooted the concept of growth points in the 1980s as a means of decongesting cities and towns.
  14. Sierra Leone improves in infant mortality11/05Sierra Leone has improved in infant mortality cases according to Save the Children- World Motherhood index 2012 report. The West Africa country descri…
  15. Zimbabwe: Resettled farmers fail to utilize…10/05Resettled farmers in Zimbabwe are failing to utilize land due to inadequate farming inputs and lack of resources.
News archive